Thugs clobber FDC supporters in Kayunga, Besigye calls for calm

According to this Daily Monitor article by  Fred Muzaale, some wrong elements are shamelessly employing ugly tactics as we draw close to voting day

At least 50 Forum for Democratic Change supporters in Kayunga District are nursing serious injuries after they were allegedly clobbered by unidentified gangs suspected to be from the ruling National Resistance Movement party.

The district FDC mobiliser, Mr Asadi Naliku, said yesterday the supporters were beaten on Tuesday while lining up on the roadsides to welcome the Inter-Party Cooperation presidential candidate, Dr Kizza Besigye, who was scheduled to address them.

Mr Naliku said the thugs who beat the FDC supporters were traveling in two Kayunga district administration pick-up vehicles whose registration numbers they concealed.

The FDC mobiliser said the residents have since established that one of the vehicles belongs to the Kayunga District Chairman’s office.

When contacted, the chairman, Mr Thomas Mulondo, said he no longer uses the said vehicle since he embarked on his re-election campaigns, adding that he was not aware of the incident.

Mr Naliku, however, said the police have not taken any action over the incident, which happened in broad daylight.

Mr Samuel Lubuulwa of Kiziika village in Nazigo Sub-county, a victim, said he was standing on the roadside holding Besigye’s campaign poster when a speeding pick-up truck screeched to a halt.

“They asked why I was holding Besigye’s poster and when I told them that I was an FDC supporter, they beat me and sped off,” Mr Lubuulwa said.

A source at Kayunga Police Station who preferred not to be named, said police had not received any complaint about the matter.

“We are just hearing rumours but no one has come to file a case with us,” the source said. Addressing a rally in the town later, Dr Besigye asked the people to “play it cool”, saying “the NRM government had only four weeks in power”.

“Those people who are beating my supporters should know that it pays to behave well in society,” Dr Besigye said.

Thugs burn cars to stop Besigye rally

In this article published on Monday, Daily Monitor's Dan Wandera & Alfed Wandera show the extent to which some people have descended in messing up the campaigns
 

A day after suspected NRM supporters burnt two cars belonging to an FDC parliamentary candidate in an attempt to stop Dr Kizza Besigye from campaigning in Nakaseke District, the opposition leader has said such acts are signs of a collapsing regime.

Dr Besigye, while campaigning in Ngoma, Nakaseke District yesterday, said it was dangerous to use political ideology to execute criminal acts including intimidation, harassment and destroying property because belonging to a particular political party is a constitutional right which should be enjoyed by every Ugandan.

Hot spot
Dr Besigye was responding to an incident in which two cars belonging to the Nakaseke North constituency FDC parliamentary candidate, Mr Moses Kabarema, were torched by unknown thugs on Friday night.

According to Mr Kabarema, who is contesting against NRM’s flag bearer and Finance Minister Syda Bbumba, the act was an attempt to scare Dr Besigye from campaigning in Ngoma Sub-county, an NRM stronghold. “On Friday, boda boda cyclists warned me that they would demonstrate if Dr Besigye came to campaign in Ngoma Sub-county because they think it is an NRM stronghold,” Mr Kabarema told Daily Monitor.

NRM vice chairman for Buganda region Abdul Nadduli condemned the act and warned people to stop hiding behind the party to commit crimes. “We should allow the investigations to continue and those found guilty should be punished. NRM doesn’t condone such acts because that is what killed UPC,” Hajj Nadduli said.

Speaking in Ngoma, Dr Besigye said: “You people should not be dragged into criminal acts and intimidation of fellow citizens. You will be made to answer for these acts at one time.”

Nakaseke RDC, Mr Geoffrey Kyomukama, said he had cautioned the rowdy youth, telling them it is Dr Besigye’s constitutional right to campaign in any part of the country.

Police spokesperson Judith Nabakooba said the same thugs raided a bar run by the candidate’s wife and broke a television set and a DVD at 1am as she was about to close. Despite the dirty scenes, Dr Besigye traversed Nakaseke District canvassing for votes.

At a rally in Kinyogoga Sub-county, he discounted claims that his rivalry with President Museveni is personal.

“The high level of corruption and collapsing government institutions cannot be personal matters between Besigye and Museveni,” Dr Besigye said. He added: “We cannot fight over women and cause change in this country. My cause is to redeem this country of the widespread corruption, rebuild government institutions and boost the farmers to make Ugandans enjoy their country.”

Vandals destroy Besigye billboards worth Shs30m

The bad elements will do anything to frustrate leading opposition candidate. As Daily Monitor's John Njoroge writes in this November 10 article, vandal's are on rampage defacing Dr. Kizza Besigye's campaign posters.

The Inter-Party Cooperation (IPC) says it has lost Shs30 million following the destruction of their candidates’ billboards. The IPC says campaign billboards were vandalised and removed in separate and unclear circumstances.

Acting Police spokesperson Vicent Ssekate said the police was concerned after receiving similar complaints from other political parties over the defacing of campaign posters.

In the last week, Kizza Besigye’s billboard in Masaka Town worth Shs15m and another on Bombo Road worth Shs11m were torn to pieces.

“It is not an isolated IPC incident,” Ssekate said last evening. “All the parties have issued complaints to us from all over the country about their campaign materials being vandalised.”

Mr Ssekate said the police will deal with the vandals. IPC communication bureau coordinator Margaret Wokuri said the coalition had not yet established whether they were isolated incidences or coordinated occurrences.

“We are told that the billboard in Wandegeya was torn by taxi touts who used it as a tent. They are still using it even now,” she said, adding that the one in Masaka was yesterday put back up. She said someone misinformed the service providers that they had not paid.

Efforts to contact the service provider were fruitless as the number availed by Ms Wokuri was out of service. Another billboard of Dr Besigye in the city centre was removed by the service provider just two days after it was erected.

The IPC faced resistance in Sembabule at the weekend when its supporters attempted to erect a Dr Besigye’s banner next to that of President Museveni hours before he arrived to address a rally.

During the presidential nomination exercise, two people were arrested; one at Namboole National Stadium and another in Kawempe after they were caught defacing posters of President Museveni.